Updates to VMware Workstation, VMware Player, VMware ACE, VMware Server, VMware ESX, VMware VCB address information disclosure, privilege escalation and other security issues.
Advisory ID: VMSA-2008-0014.3
Synopsis: Updates to VMware Workstation, VMware Player,
VMware ACE, VMware Server, VMware ESX, VMware VCB
address information disclosure, privilege escalation
and other security issues.
Issue date: 2008-08-29
Updated on: 2008-10-31
Relevant releases
VMware Workstation 6.0.4 and earlier,
VMware Workstation 5.5.7 and earlier,
VMware Player 2.0.4 and earlier,
VMware Player 1.0.7 and earlier,
VMware ACE 2.0.4 and earlier,
VMware ACE 1.0.6 and earlier,
VMware Server 1.0.6 and earlier,
VMware ESXi 3.5 without patch ESXe350-200808501-I-SG
VMware ESX 3.5 without patches ESX350-200808401-BG, ESX350-200808409-SG.
VMware ESX 3.0.3 without patches ESX303-200808404-SG, ESX303-200808403-SG
ESX303-200808406-SG.
VMware ESX 3.0.2 without patches ESX-1005109, ESX-1005113,
ESX-1005114.
VMware ESX 3.0.1 without patches ESX-1005108, ESX-1005112,
ESX-1005111, ESX-1004823,
ESX-1005117.
VMware ESX 2.5.5 before Upgrade Patch 10
VMware ESX 2.5.4 before Upgrade Patch 20
VMware VCB 1.1
3. Problem Description
I Security Issues
a. Setting ActiveX killbit
Starting from this release, VMware has set the killbit on its
ActiveX controls. Setting the killbit ensures that ActiveX
controls cannot run in Internet Explorer (IE), and avoids
security issues involving ActiveX controls in IE. See the
Microsoft KB article 240797 and the related references on this
topic.
Security vulnerabilities have been reported for ActiveX controls
provided by VMware when run in IE. Under specific circumstances,
exploitation of these ActiveX controls might result in denial-of-
service or can allow running of arbitrary code when the user
browses a malicious Web site or opens a malicious file in IE
browser. An attempt to run unsafe ActiveX controls in IE might
result in pop-up windows warning the user.
Note: IE can be configured to run unsafe ActiveX controls without
prompting. VMware recommends that you retain the default
settings in IE, which prompts when unsafe actions are
requested.
Earlier, VMware had issued knowledge base articles, KB 5965318 and
KB 9078920 on security issues with ActiveX controls. To avoid
malicious scripts that exploit ActiveX controls, do not enable
unsafe ActiveX objects in your browser settings. As a best
practice, do not browse untrusted Web sites as an administrator
and do not click OK or Yes if prompted by IE to allow certain
actions.
VMware would like to thank Julien Bachmann, Shennan Wang, Shinnai,
and Michal Bucko for reporting these issues to us.
The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures Project (cve.mitre.org)
has assigned the names CVE-2008-3691, CVE-2008-3692,
CVE-2008-3693, CVE-2008-3694, CVE-2008-3695, CVE-2007-5438, and
CVE-2008-3696 to the security issues with VMware ActiveX controls.
VMware Product Running Replace with/
Product Version on Apply Patch
============= ======== ======= =================
VirtualCenter any Windows not affected
Workstation 6.x Windows 6.0.5 build 109488 or later
Workstation 6.x Linux not affected
Workstation 5.x Windows 5.5.8 build 108000 or later
Workstation 5.x Linux not affected
Player 2.x Windows 2.0.5 build 109488 or later
Player 2.x Linux not affected
Player 1.x Windows 1.0.8 build or later
Player 1.x Linux not affected
ACE 2.x Windows 2.0.5 build 109488 or later
ACE 1.x Windows 1.0.7 build 108880 or later
Server 1.x Windows 1.0.7 build 108231 or later
Server 1.x Linux not affected
Fusion 1.x Mac OS/X not affected
Fusion 2.x Mac OS/X not affected
ESXi 3.5 ESXi not affected
ESX any ESX not affected
b. VMware ISAPI Extension Denial of Service
The Internet Server Application Programming Interface (ISAPI) is
an API that extends the functionality of Internet Information
Server (IIS). VMware uses ISAPI extensions in its Server product.
One of the ISAPI extensions provided by VMware is vulnerable to a
remote denial of service. By sending a malformed request, IIS
might shut down. IIS 6.0 restarts automatically. However, IIS 5.0
does not restart automatically when its Startup Type is set to
Manual.
VMware would like to thank the Juniper Networks J-Security
Security Research Team for reporting this issue to us.
The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures Project (cve.mitre.org)
has assigned the name CVE-2008-3697 to this issue.
VMware Product Running Replace with/
Product Version on Apply Patch
============= ======== ======= =================
VirtualCenter any Windows not affected
Workstation 6.x Windows not affected
Workstation 6.x Linux not affected
Workstation 5.x Windows not affected
Workstation 5.x Linux not affected
Player 2.x Windows not affected
Player 2.x Linux not affected
Player 1.x Windows not affected
Player 1.x Linux not affected
ACE 2.x Windows not affected
ACE 1.x Windows not affected
Server 1.x Windows 1.0.7 build 108231 or later
Server 1.x Linux not affected
Fusion 1.x Mac OS/X not affected
Fusion 2.x Mac OS/X not affected
ESXi 3.5 ESXi not affected
ESX any ESX not affected
c. OpenProcess Local Privilege Escalation on Host System
This release fixes a privilege escalation vulnerability in host
systems. Exploitation of this vulnerability allows users to run
arbitrary code on the host system with elevated privileges.
VMware would like to thank Sun Bing from McAfee, Inc. for
reporting this issue to us.
The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures Project (cve.mitre.org)
has assigned the name CVE-2008-3698 to this issue.
VMware Product Running Replace with/
Product Version on Apply Patch
============= ======== ======= =================
VirtualCenter any Windows not affected
Workstation 6.x Windows not affected
Workstation 6.x Linux not affected
Workstation 5.x Windows 5.5.8 build 108000 or later
Workstation 5.x Linux not affected
Player 2.x Windows not affected
Player 2.x Linux not affected
Player 1.x Windows 1.0.8 build 109488 or later
Player 1.x Linux not affected
ACE 2.x Windows not affected
ACE 1.x Windows 1.0.7 build 108880 or later
Server 1.x Windows 1.0.7 build 108231 or later
Server 1.x Linux not affected
Fusion 1.x Mac OS/X not affected
Fusion 2.x Mac OS/X not affected
ESXi 3.5 ESXi not affected
ESX any ESX not affected
d. Update to Freetype
FreeType 2.3.6 resolves an integer overflow vulnerability and other
vulnerabilities that can allow malicious users to run arbitrary code
or might cause a denial-of-service after reading a maliciously
crafted file. This release updates FreeType to 2.3.7.
The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures Project (cve.mitre.com)
has assigned the names CVE-2008-1806, CVE-2008-1807, and
CVE-2008-1808 to the issues resolved in Freetype 2.3.6.
VMware Product Running Replace with/
Product Version on Apply Patch
============= ======== ======= =================
VirtualCenter any Windows not affected
Workstation 6.x Windows not affected
Workstation 6.x Linux 6.0.5 build 109488 or later
Workstation 5.x Windows not affected
Workstation 5.x Linux 5.5.8 build 108000 or later
Player 2.x Windows not affected
Player 2.x Linux 2.0.5 build 109488 or later
Player 1.x Windows not affected
Player 1.x Linux 1.0.8 build 108000 or later
ACE 2.x Windows not affected
ACE 1.x Windows not affected
Server 1.x Windows not affected
Server 1.x Linux 1.0.7 build 108231 or later
Fusion 1.x Mac OS/X upgrade to Fusion 2.0
Fusion 2.x Mac OS/X not affected
ESXi 3.5 ESXi not affected
ESX 3.5 ESX not affected
ESX 3.0.3 ESX not affected
ESX 3.0.2 ESX not affected
ESX 3.0.1 ESX not affected
ESX 2.5.5 ESX ESX 2.5.5 upgrade patch 10 or later
ESX 2.5.4 ESX ESX 2.5.4 upgrade patch 20
e. Update to Cairo
Cairo 1.4.12 resolves an integer overflow vulnerability that can
allow malicious users to run arbitrary code or might cause a
denial-of-service after reading a maliciously crafted PNG file.
This release updates Cairo to 1.4.14.
The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (cve.mitre.com) has
assigned the name CVE-2007-5503 to this issue.
VMware Product Running Replace with/
Product Version on Apply Patch
============= ======== ======= =================
VirtualCenter any Windows not affected
Workstation 6.x Windows not affected
Workstation 6.x Linux 6.0.5 build 109488 or later
Workstation 5.x Windows not affected
Workstation 5.x Linux not affected
Player 2.x Windows not affected
Player 2.x Linux 2.0.5 build 109488 or later
Player 1.x Windows not affected
Player 1.x Linux not affected
ACE 2.x Windows not affected
ACE 1.x Windows not affected
Server 1.x Windows not affected
Server 1.x Linux not affected
Fusion 1.x Mac OS/X upgrade to Fusion 2.0
Fusion 2.x Mac OS/X not affected
ESXi 3.5 ESXi not affected
ESX any ESX not affected
f. VMware Consolidated Backup (VCB) command-line utilities may expose
sensitive information
VMware Consolidated Backup command-line utilities accept the user
password through the -p command-line option. Users logged into the
ESX service console or into the system that runs VCB could gain
access to the username and password used by VCB command-line utilities
when such commands are running.
The ESX patch and the new version of VCB resolve this issue by
providing an alternative way of passing the password used by VCB
command-line utilities.
VCB in ESX
----------
The following options are recommended for passing the password:
1. The password is specified in /etc/backuptools.conf
(PASSWORD=xxxxx), and -p is not used in the command line.
/etc/backuptools.conf file permissions are read/write only
for root.
2. No password is specified in /etc/backuptools.conf and the
-p option is not used in the command line. The user will be
prompted to enter a password.
ESX is not affected unless you use VCB.
Stand-alone VCB
---------------
The following options are recommended for passing the password:
1. The password is specified in config.js (PASSWORD=xxxxx), and -p
is not used in the command line. The file permissions on config.js
are read/write only for the administrator. The config.js file is
located in folder "config" of the VCB installation folder. For example,
C:\Program Files\Vmware\Vmware Consolidated Backup Framework\config.
2. The password is specified in the registry, and is not specified in
config.js, and -p is not used in the command line. Access to the
registry key holding the password is allowed only to the administrator.
The location of the registry key is:
On Windows x86: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\VMware, Inc.\
VMware Consolidated Backup\Password
On Windows x64: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\
VMware, Inc.\VMware Consolidated Backup\Password
3. The password is not specified in the registry, and is not specified in
config.js, and -p is not used in the command line. The user will be
prompted to enter a password.
The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures project (cve.mitre.org)
has assigned the name CVE-2008-2101 to this issue.
VMware Product Running Replace with/
Product Version on Apply Patch
============= ======== ======= ===================
VirtualCenter any Windows not affected
hosted * any any not affected
ESXi 3.5 ESXi not affected
ESX 3.5 ESX ESX350-200808203-UG
ESX 3.0.3 ESX ESX303-200808403-SG
ESX 3.0.2 ESX ESX-1004824
ESX 3.0.1 ESX ESX-1004823
ESX 2.5.5 ESX not affected
ESX 2.5.4 ESX not affected
VCB 1.5 Windows not affected **
VCB 1.1 Windows VCB 1.1 Update 1
* hosted products are VMware Workstation, Player, ACE, Server, Fusion
** VCB 1.5 already has the alternative ways of supplying the user password
g. Third Party Library libpng Updated to 1.2.29
Several flaws were discovered in the way third party library
libpng handled various PNG image chunks. An attacker could
create a carefully crafted PNG image file in such a way that
it causes an application linked with libpng to crash when the
file is manipulated.
The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures project (cve.mitre.org)
has assigned the name CVE-2007-5269 to this issue.
NOTE: There are multiple patches required to remediate the issue.
VMware Product Running Replace with/
Product Version on Apply Patch
============= ======== ======= ===================
VirtualCenter any Windows not affected
hosted * any any not affected
ESXi 3.5 ESXi ESXe350-200808501-I-SG
ESX 3.5 ESX ESX350-200808401-BG
ESX 3.0.3 ESX ESX303-200808404-SG
ESX303-200808403-SG
ESX 3.0.2 ESX ESX-1005109 ESX-1005114 ESX-1005113
ESX 3.0.1 ESX ESX-1005112 ESX-1005108 ESX-1005111
ESX 2.5.5 ESX ESX 2.5.5 upgrade patch 10 or later
ESX 2.5.4 ESX ESX 2.5.4 upgrade patch 21
* hosted products are VMware Workstation, Player, ACE, Server, Fusion
II ESX Service Console rpm updates
a. update to bind
This update upgrades the service console rpms for bind-utils and
bind-lib to version 9.2.4-22.el3.
Version 9.2.4.-22.el3 addresses the recently discovered
vulnerability in the BIND software used for Domain Name
resolution (DNS). VMware doesn't install all the BIND packages
on ESX Server and is not vulnerable by default to the reported
vulnerability. Of the BIND packages, VMware only ships bind-util
and bind-lib in the service console and these components by
themselves cannot be used to setup a DNS server. Bind-lib and
bind-util are used in client DNS applications like nsupdate,
nslookup, etc.
VMware explicitly discourages installing applications like BIND
on the service console. In case the customer has installed BIND,
and the DNS server is configured to support recursive queries,
their ESX Server system is affected and they should replace BIND
with a patched version.
Note: ESX Server will use the DNS server on the network it is
on, so it is important to patch that DNS server.
The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures project (cve.mitre.org)
has assigned the name CVE-2008-1447 to this issue.
VMware Product Running Replace with/
Product Version on Apply Patch
============= ======== ======= ===================
VirtualCenter any Windows not affected
hosted * any any not affected
ESXi 3.5 ESXi not affected
ESX 3.5 ESX ESX350-200808409-SG
ESX 3.0.3 ESX ESX303-200808406-SG
ESX 3.0.2 ESX ESX-1006356
ESX 3.0.1 ESX ESX-1005117
ESX 2.5.5 ESX ESX 2.5.5 upgrade patch 10 or later
ESX 2.5.4 ESX ESX 2.5.4 upgrade patch 21
* hosted products are VMware Workstation, Player, ACE, Server, Fusion
4. Solution
Please review the patch/release notes for your product and version
and verify the md5sum of your downloaded file.
VMware Workstation 6.0.5
------------------------
http://www.vmware.com/download/ws/
Release notes:
http://www.vmware.com/support/ws6/doc/releasenotes_ws6.html
Windows binary
md5sum: 46b4c54f0493f59f52ac6c2965296859
RPM Installation file for 32-bit Linux
md5sum: 49ebfbd05d146ecc43262622ab746f03
tar Installation file for 32-bit Linux
md5sum: 14ac93bffeee72528629d4caecc5ef37
RPM Installation file for 64-bit Linux
md5sum: 0a856f1a1a31ba3c4b08bcf85d97ccf6
tar Installation file for 64-bit Linux
md5sum: 3b459254069d663e9873a661bc97cf6c
VMware Workstation 5.5.8
------------------------
http://www.vmware.com/download/ws/ws5.html
Release notes:
http://www.vmware.com/support/ws55/doc/releasenotes_ws55.html
Windows binary:
md5sum: 745c3250e5254eaf6e65fcfc4172070f
Compressed Tar archive for 32-bit Linux
md5sum: 65a454749d15d4863401619d7ff5566e
Linux RPM version for 32-bit Linux
md5sum: d80adc73b1500bdb0cb24d1b0733bcff
VMware Player 2.0.5 and 1.0.8
-----------------------------
http://www.vmware.com/download/player/
Release notes Player 1.x:
http://www.vmware.com/support/player/doc/releasenotes_player.html
Release notes Player 2.0
http://www.vmware.com/support/player2/doc/releasenotes_player2.html